Never Leave Me
by missingfailures
Summary: Selkie knows what it's like to be afraid, it's how she would feel if she ever lost Kiragi. And in her nightmare, that's exactly what happens.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Wanted to write some more Angst with Hurt/Comfort, so I fell back to my favorite ship cause I need more of it.

As always, I hope you enjoy!

* * *

Ash and embers drowns the hellish air, the smell of sulfur laying thick in it. Flames flicker across the burnt grass and scorched remains laid about. Her outfit is torn and scorched and she's covered head to toe in scratches and bruises. Every part of her being screams in pain, to stop moving, yet Selkie pushes through it all and limps across the burning forest.

"Kiragi!" she croaks, voice hoarse from the smoke, "Kiragi, where are you!?"

She needs to find him, he's in danger and if she doesn't get to him in time he's going to die. Other thoughts fail her, she MUST find him.

Stumbling over a root - or maybe a corpse, the girl looses her footing and pain erupts in her sides as she collapses. Gritting her teeth as she sucks in a breath, the girl forces herself back up and trudges against the hellish heat of the inferno.

Can't stop, have to find him. Have to _save_ him.

She can barely see anything before her, the thick palls of smoke hide everything, faint shapes claw out hungrily from its depths only to be dragged back by something else, something far bigger.

Placing a hand against her mouth, she pushes through the miasma, avoiding the clawing branches and snagging roots.

Her lungs are screaming for air by the time she passes through the black wall, she collapses to her knees, coughing as she gasps for what little air there is. Her eyes come across a trail in the soot, and Selkie forces herself up with a growl, following it.

Having seemingly appeased whatever was causing all of this, the chaos recedes. Flames weaken in might, her body doesn't ache as much, the air clears up, she can finally breathe. Yet her gut refuses to calm down.

_Something's wrong_. It tells her.

"Kiragi?" She calls out again, finding her voice again. "Where are you?"

She hears a faint sound beyond the fog, a minute, pained groan. Kiragi's voice.

And that's more than enough to sow dread into her heart.

Just like that, the forest is back to its hellish state, and with it, so does the pain. She nearly doubles over from it, growling as she stands her ground and pushes through.

She can see it now, a faint blur in the smoke, a lone tree, still carrying some few tattered shreds of leaves. Against its scorched bark rests a faint silhouette.

Selkie frowns and steps forward, squinting her eyes in an attempt to discern more of their appearance.

No.

**NO.**

Adrenaline and dread surges through her, and she dashes to him, her own pain no longer a concern.

In that moment, whatever inferno the forest was before pales in comparison to what it is now, stronger than before. She chokes on thick smoke but staggers through, reaching the scorched tree— and Kiragi.

One look at him and she wants to vomit. He's hurt all over, covered head to toe in angry cuts and bruises, a huge gash runs across his stomach, bleeding profusely.

He looks at her with agony and fear in his eyes, gritting his teeth as he bites down on a scream. "S-Selkie?" he croaks.

"Kiragi!" She kneels before him and looks around frantically for any supplies. Finding a few discarded bandages at his side, Selkie grabs them and presses down on the wound, anything to stop the bleeding. But to her horror it doesn't do anything, the blood just seeps through like they're not even there.

"Selkie... it hurts..!" He whimpers, tears running down his cheeks.

"Oh gods... Kiragi, stay with me!" She pleads, tearing off her own clothes and pressing down harder on the wound, cringing as he lets out a pained noise. "Stay with me, whatever you do, don't go! Please!"

That doesn't stop the bleeding either, her every attempts at patching him up fails, causing him further agony and driving her mad with panic.

Meanwhile, the fire closes in around them, preventing any escapes as it edges closer and closer with searing rage.

Everything blends into a single chaotic cacophony, the encroaching inferno and its thick palls inching towards them, her futile, panicked attempt at helping him, and his terrified whimpers.

Overtaken with fear, Selkie grabs Kiragi and embraces him, begging him not to let go. He holds her too with everything he has, but his grip is weak.

The fire rages around them, flames lick at her feet yet she feels nothing.

He's starting to slump back, his grip on her turning limp. His voice, already pale, grows even fainter. "Scared..." he whimpers, "sc-scared."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..." she whimpers pitifully, tears rolling down her cheeks. It's all she can do to him, apologize and hold him close, everything else failed.

The inferno becomes deafening, drowning out any other noise as it climbs onto her back, yet it causes no harm save for an insufferable heat. And despite the roaring, cackling fire, she hears his next word perfectly.

"...Selkie."

His arms slide down and he slumps back. Kiragi lays limp in her arms, his eyes empty and lifeless. Despair washes over her in a crushing wave, he's gone. The inferno overtakes them both, and the last she sees is his body vanishing from her tearful and broken hold.

**"NO!"**

Selkie jolts upright screaming her denial, reaching forth in a cold sweat only to grasp at empty air. Bewildered, She looks around and takes in her surroundings, distress still rooted deeply inside her.

She's back in her room, sitting up in bed. There's no fire, no burning heat. She's perfectly unharmed, not so much as a scrap of pain in her body. She feels sick to her stomach, saliva pooling at the back of her throat, her heart feels as if it's about to burst from her chest, and her nightgown is sticky with sweat.

She shakes her head and closes her eyes, sighing wearily. _"Just a nightmare,"_ she reassures herself, swallowing thickly, _"Just a nightmare._"

The rush of adrenaline begins to ebb as her hitched breath slows down into something more stable, the dread in her heart shrinking into unease.

"Selkie?"

She juts her head to the side eyes wide at the voice, finding Kiragi alive and unharmed, having propped himself up on his arms, staring at her with worry in his eyes. She had been so absorbed into her nightmare that she had completely forgotten about him being at her side. Selkie feels as if a mountain has been knocked off her shoulders as relief washes over her.

"Is everything alright?" He asks, scooting closer to her.

Acting on impulses, the girl darts to him and pulls him in a tight, relieved hug, resting her head on his shoulder. She doesn't care she's sobbing, that tears are running down her cheeks, only that he's safe and sound, that it wasn't real.

Kiragi stiffens at first, but hums and returns the embrace. "Nightmare?" he strains, running a hand up and down her back.

She nods. "We were in the woods. There was a huge fire and I was searching for you. I found you bleeding out and in pain, and no matter what I did, I couldn't save you. You died in my arms, and I couldn't do anything to stop it."

Kiragi raises his head, wincing at the thought. "Oh." He runs a hand through her hair, brushing it. "It's just a dream, I'm okay," he murmurs.

Moving back, a hand cradles the side of her face, wiping away her tears, and Kiragi leans in to rest his forehead against her, the two of them staring deep into the other's eyes. Still seeing some trace unease in them, the boy offers her a reassuring and comforting smile, then kisses her.

Soothed, Selkie hums and takes her previous place in his neck.

The pair remains huddled together, neither speaking, Kiragi running a soothing hand down her back, and Selkie holding to him like a lifeline, breathing quietly in his comforting grasp.

Eventually, Selkie mumbles something before pulling away, and Kiragi turns around so she can scoot forward and snuggle against his back. Snaking an arm over him, she finds and laces their fingers together.

"Never leave me." She murmurs.

"I won't," he swears, bringing her hand closer to him, "I'll never, ever let you go."

Comforted by his promise, the girl drifts off to sleep, and her mate soon joins her.

As long as Kiragi is at her side, everything will be alright.

* * *

**A/N: **Next chapter will be an alternate ending where Kiragi wakes up before Selkie, and more cuddling.


	2. Chapter 2

In the roaring, maddening storm of despair and hatred that is the inferno she's trapped in, something cracks, and Selkie finds herself in greater pain than before, collapsing at Kiragi's side clutching her chest as she shuts her eyes abd whimpers in agony, the pain growing and growing and never stopping. And in throes of burning, piercing, stabbing anguish, she calls out for help.

A disturbance stirs Kiragi from his slumber in the middle of the night. He shifts a little, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as his groggy mind slowly comes to. He looks around and tries to make sense of it, but a scared whimper followed by shifting sheets takes him away from it.

"Huh?"

Flipping over, the boy instantly notices Selkie tossing and whimpering in her sleep, her face marred with agonized distress, hands fidgeting incomprehensible motions.

At the sight, his heart bleeds with sadness as the pieces fit together at once; she's having a nightmare, and her quakes had been sufficient enough to wake him up.

Shaking his head, Kiragi scoots closer to her and, slowly, carefully, reaches forth and brings her to himself, hands settling on both her back and the back of her head. By instincts, Selkie closes the distance and latches onto him in a firm and needy hold, nestling into his chest. He strains a little from her forceful grip, but doesn't blame her, he's probably the same. One hand starts tracing circles on her back while the other brushes her hair as he whispers, "Shhh. It's okay, everything's alright."

But just as quick as it began to rise, it pauses, and it starts to inch away, as does the palls of smoke and searing lights

A faint warmth, one different from the blinding flames, soothing instead of hurting, inches its way around her as does a faint pressure, and she latches onto it, desperate for any relief from this hell.

As she continues to hold onto it, the more the anguish ebbs, and the warmth starts to take shape into something solid, real.

"Shhh. It's okay, everything's alright," a voice whispers, hoarse yet soft.

Selkie opens her eyes, finding herself in Kiragi's arms. He's still badly injured, but the bleeding's gone, and he radiates a comforting aura, one which promises safety.

Confused and desperate, she buries herself into his hold anew. "Kiragi..."

"Kiragi..." she mumbles in her sleep, her voice trembling.

"You're fine," he says, nuzzling her. Already her breathing is on its way back to normal, she doesn't fidgets as much as before, but her hold remains steadfast. She's on the road back to a good night's rest.

Her body isn't in pain anymore, just a dull throb all over. The air is cool and a faint wind blows against her scabbed skin.

"Everything's going to be alright," he says, brushing her hair.

Opening her eyes, she finds herself in his grasp, the two of them against a burnt tree on a hill overlooking a ruined forest, the sky cloudy yet on its way to clearing up. For his part, Kiragi looks a mile better than what he looked before, albeit with still a few cuts and bruises.

She feels safe, but there's still fear, so she hangs on him yet again, burying her head in his shoulder as she shuts her eyes and sinks into that warmth.

The slight twitching of her ears still betrays her remaining unease, so Kiragi leans in to kiss her forehead, smiling when she lets out a small soothed sound.

With practiced movements, the boy rolls onto his back, setting the girl on his stomach and nuzzling her, brushing a hand in her hair but avoiding her ears— that's for an entirely _different _ kind of comfort.

"It's okay, I'm here, nothing can hurt you."

She's not hurt anymore, neither is he.

A clear sky lies above, a faint breeze carrying the singing of birds. A lush forests decorates the horizon and the canopy of leaves above shades them from the brilliant sunlight, the weather delicious and exciting. Whatever hellish nightmare she was trapped in before has long since vanished into oblivion, sure to never return again.

Having nestled her into his arms, amber eyes gaze warmly into hers, promising safety from whatever harm that could come her way.

"Everything's okay, Selkie," her mate says, brushing her hair, "Everything's okay."

Selkie musters a grateful, tearful smile. "Never leave me," she says before leaning forth to kiss him, closing her eyes.

Pulling back from it, Kiragi smiles. "I won't. I'll always be there for you," he promises.

Above him, Selkie sleeps soundly, any remaining fear long gone. She burrows herself into the crook of his neck, and Kiragi smiles as he too drifts off to sleep, mumbling "I love you." to the girl in his arms.

As long as the two are together, everything will be alright.


End file.
